Any fixed blade knife of appropriately short length can be a boot knife by the simple expedient of using a sheath with a clip. Look for a smallish knife that you like in that price range. I'd steer away from anything with a kraton or other rubbery handle. As they rub against your leg, they pull the hair out and are very uncomfortable. BTW, since we no longer generally wear our pants tucked down into our boots, boot knives are pretty slow to deploy.

hso

April 9, 2003, 02:10 PM

Why do you want a "boot" knife?

brownie0486

April 9, 2003, 02:29 PM

Just something to fill his boots is my guess.

Brownie

JShirley

April 9, 2003, 04:22 PM

While I believe you should be able to lawfully strap a greatsword (or a GE Minigun, for that matter) to your back, you should probably be careful how your weapon and location choice will be perceived by the public and local law enforcement.

I thought "boot knife" was just a generic term for any short, fixed blade knife, not how it's carried. Am I wrong?

brownie0486

April 9, 2003, 09:15 PM

In generic terms the boot knife is any knife I stick into my boot. At that moment it becomes "my" boot knife.

Generally makers have designed small straight blades with narrow, thin profiles which more readily "hide" to due to their smaller size and called that type of knife a boot knife.

Many so called boot knives come double edged as well which is illegal in most states here in the USA.

Brownie

kannonfyre

April 9, 2003, 10:08 PM

Hso:

I need a "boot" knife for two reasons.

1) A small knife that I can attach to my belt and conceal under an untucked shirt. It's a lot easier to hide than a collapsed 9.5" baton and I'd like to widen my self defense options when I have to make my way through the local crime ridden slums.

2) The same knife should be able to be strapped to my calf over my BDU pants when I go for reservist duty. I don't have enough space on my LBE belt for a fixed blade untility/combat knife.

Does SOG's Mini-tsunami fit the bill?

Crimper-D

April 9, 2003, 11:01 PM

This was deliberately designed and marketed as a "Boot Knife"
an Engnath copy of a Bob Lum design... Bought it from Engnth's catalog as a blank of ATS34 and ginished and hilted it myself...
Trouble is I hilted it with Madrone burl = real pretty, but too delecate for practical carry. Oh yea, Boot Knives are contrary to California's idiotic kinfe laws now, so I use it as a letteropener:banghead: :fire:
Never have had to sharpen the thing - even after years of use.
Maybe if I ever get out of this insane over-legislated state, I'll re-hilt it with Mycarta and pack it again.
Crazy state... I can legally pack concealed (CCW), but can't conceal a fixed blade knife = a felony since about 1914:cuss: :rolleyes:

IRONFIST

April 10, 2003, 05:22 AM

Cold Steel "Kobun"... matte black, very sharp, very light. Sand down the Kraton a bit and it will be fine. Got mine for 20 bucks on eBay.

Michael in Sandy, OR

Scott Evans

April 10, 2003, 10:16 AM

The requirements of “good” and “under $90.00” eliminate anything that I could suggest.

If you are willing to go a little higher in price I would consider Bud Nealy http://www.budnealyknifemaker.com/

Griff

April 10, 2003, 12:18 PM

Check out Cold Steel's push daggers, called Safe Keepers:
http://www.coldsteel.com/index-b.html
The shorter one also works well as a neck-knife for me on occasion.

JShirley

April 10, 2003, 10:32 PM

Thanks for the clarification. That helps.
This might suit your needs: http://sharperthings.com/sharper/index.cfm?action=dspprodfeature&prodid=896

Navy joe

April 10, 2003, 11:22 PM

I have a SOG pentagon I sometimes boot carry. Not ideal, but better than nothing when you are not supposed to have any knife. Other times i carry it IWB which I prefer. Less than legal, I'm confused. I can be trusted to carry whatever 17+ round pistol I can, a shotgun in the trunk, yet according to Virginia a stinkin 5" double edge knife is illegal?

The short version is that I can spell b-i-g f-e-l-o-n-y real easy if I get caught w/ a gun on base. A knife as part of my hunting pack in trunk or on me will most likely get me berated by a guard and at worst knife taken. I try to keep cool enough stuff that anyone bothering me would either let me off, or take the knife for themselves rather than making it official. Kinda like having a crowbar, it's "burglar tools" if you use it wrong, no big deal if you don't.

mercop

April 12, 2003, 11:11 PM

I have a total of 4-5 different blades on me all the time. My "boot" is a CS Safekeeper. I made a webbing and velcro strap that cinches it down over my Danner Arcadias while in patrol uniform (in the boot is a PIA). It does not move and is very comfortable. Has even stayed put during foot chases and the fight at the end. It is my only fixed blade in uniform and not the first blade I would grab. I can get to it fast while in the car and it would be easy to get to while on the ground. I know enough about ground fighting to get up as fast as I can. BTW Wholesale Hunter has these hot little number for $34.

Gray_Fallen

April 12, 2003, 11:47 PM

Check out the Gryphon boot knife, available from Cutlery Shoppe ( www.cutleryshoppe.com ) it looks like a really nice design to me, and I have heard nothing but glowing reviews for it, from people very very much in the know such as Greg Walker.

ahadams

April 14, 2003, 12:24 AM

and I want to see JShirley's assault sling for the GE minigun! I always thought that was why God made Humvees...

makdaddy03

April 14, 2003, 01:22 AM

I know that these are cheap knives but I find them to sharpen easy and serves its purpose. :uhoh: United Cutlery

Don Gwinn

April 14, 2003, 06:03 PM

If he wants a last-ditch defense weapon, as a "boot knife" is usually percieved, UC wouldn't be so bad. If he wants a small knife to use as a field utility piece, he'll want much better than UC. That "surgical stainless" is Pakistani wet-noodle steel. It sharpens easily because it's about as soft as aluminum.

Gray_Fallen

April 14, 2003, 06:54 PM

UC makes a couple, like the Rigid Boot Dagger, that look nice to me, and seem decent for weapons. I've given thought to getting some for just that purpose - steel is steel, flesh is flesh, sharp steel cut flesh.